A Russian aircraft, a Sukhoi-24, which NATO calls Fencer, the low-flying tactical bomber - an aircraft considered better than our Tornado - was shot down north of Latakia by a Turkish F-16. The Russian aircraft was flying at an altitude of 6,000 meters.

The past month has seen increasing tensions between Washington and Moscow over the Syria-Assad-DAESH nexus of seemingly perpetual conflict. This tension has not been mitigated by the sometimes-substantive but always-political interventions in the region.

It has been almost one year since the IV Caspian Summit in Astrakhan, Russia, where the presidents of the five Caspian states signed a political declaration that denied any foreign military presence in the Caspian Sea.

The bad cloud that portends a perfect storm continues to build. Perhaps the most serious development on the near horizon is a possible Putin pivot from Syria to Libya. It may be in the works - if it is, bad things are bound to happen.

The policy of the United States concerning climate change in the Arctic has been and is one that is ever-changing. Since 2009 there have been adaptations to the policy in order to face the concerns of today while anticipating the challenges of tomorrow.

In the United States the Office of Economic Sanctions Policy and Implementation (SPI) holds responsibility for the development and implementation of international sanctions. A key factor in the development of effective international sanction policy and support is the cooperation of various internal organizations.

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